2012 Toyota Corolla Brake Fluid Change

[William]

Hi my name's William. I'm new to the Toyota Corolla Forum. I live in Canada, and my service manual tells me to replace the brake fluid at 64,000 kilometers. I've downloaded service manuals from the States, and they say just top ups are required. What is correct?

I bought the 2012 Corolla, manual tranny, brand new, and every year I service it with Krown rust protection. I use the car for delivery jobs and put on about 14,000 miles per year. How good are these Corollas? How reliable are they? What kind of high mileage can you put on them? Thank you.

 

[Donabed Kopoian]

They are pretty reliable. How does the fluid look? If it is still relatively clear and the brake pedal is accurate, then you will be fine. If you have a spongy pedal and brown fluid, I'd do a flush.

If you have a friend helping you out, you can remove a brake line (I usually do the rear passenger side first since that is the longest line). Remove the brake line, and while you are draining the fluid, have a friend start adding in fresh fluid in to keep the reservoir full. Communication is key. The filler needs to tell you when to plug the line while he opens up a new bottle if one gets empty, and you need to tell him to stop adding when you see fresh fluid come out of the line and re-connect the brake line or he'll spill it and damage paintwork.

Bleed that line until no air comes out, bleed the rear driver-side until fresh fluid comes out, then the front passenger side, then the front driver side (basically, you start with the longest line and work your way to the shortest line).

This is time consuming and it requires a friend that knows what he is doing. If the reservoir is allowed to empty, it is a pain in the ass to clear air out of the lines, and if you have ABS, it will be mandatory to get a power flush if you allow the reservoir to go empty because bleeding won't remove air from the ABS module. You can't use a one-man bleeder kit to do this. You have to have someone pump the brake pedal, hold it down while you release and tighten the bleed screw, and then start pumping again.

 

[Donabed Kopoian]

Chances are, you'll be fine. I've had brake fluid go years before replacing, irrelevant of the miles on it. (Brake fluid gradually absorbs humidity from the air so it takes time to wear out).

 

[Scott O'Kashan]

Hi William and welcome to the Corolla Forum! :thumbup::clap::thumbup1:arty::rockon:

Brake fluid is hygroscopic, which means it attracts moisture into it from the air. As the brake fluid becomes increasingly contaminated with water, the boiling point of the brake fluid decreases and during an emergency stop, or heavy brake use, (like going down a long hill), the boiling point of the brake fluid can be eclipsed and the result is the brake pedal goes to the firewall, your eyes get big, your knuckles go white on the steering wheel and you can't stop the car! At a minimum, water in the brake fluid can cause corrosion and cause the calipers to stick, which can wear out the brake pads prematurely. So I recommend you follow the owners manual, especially regarding brakes because they are such a big safety issue.

Below is an article about this topic -

http://www.carsdirect.com/car-repair/everything-you-need-to-know-about-brake-fluid

Bleeding brakes can be a pain, especially if the bleeder screws snap or become rounded, which is fairly common and then replacement calipers are needed. Very expensive. So what I do with my own cars is to use a turkey baster to remove most of the brake fluid from the master cylinder and pour in fresh fluid. You don't want to remove all of the brake fluid in the master cylinder or air will get into the brake lines and then the brake pedal will be very spongey, necessitating bleeding the entire brake system. I do this about 2-3 times over a week period and it replaces the old brake fluid with new. I repeat this procedure about once per year and so my car always has fresh brake fluid in the brake system.

 

[fishycomics]

Use the correct fluid, if it is DOT 3 that is what you sue, there are now newer fluids so makesure you use what is recommended for the car!

Keep only for a year an open brake container, toss out if sits to long.

Brake fluid can be changed whichever comes first the mileage, or 3 years.

Fish

 

[Donabed Kopoian]

Great point fishy. Never use an old container of open brake fluid unless you are positive that the purchase date has been recent.